I just got back from the protest outside the original Chamber of Commerce and Industry building and I have to say, I’m a bit disappointed. There were only around 30 people there mostly consisting of young Kuwaiti architects which makes me wonder, where was everyone else? I know a lot more than just 30 people care about saving Kuwait’s architectural heritage but they just weren’t there.

I was kinda joking around with a friend that maybe if there was valet more people would show up but I’m starting to think that it might have actually attracted more people. In any case the owner of the building was there and he actually wants to preserve the building but the baladiya only gave approval on demolishing and not refurbishing. Too much politics, but hopefully this is going to get solved and the building will be saved. But even if this building is saved today, there will still be more that need saving tomorrow.

A completely random but interesting fact, I recently found out the beautifully designed Kuwait Embassy in Japan (pictured above) was designed by the same legendary architect behind the original Kuwait Airport, Kenzo Tange. The building was built in 1966, 13 years before the Kuwait Airport.

The Kuwait Airport website was recently majorly revamped. The website visually looks a lot more cleaner and modern with the most important information, the arrivals and departures timings now clearly displayed as soon as you enter. According to the website theres also a mobile application coming and WiFi will soon be free throughout the airport. Check out the revamped website [Here]

To take a look at previous designs, here’s how the website looked in [2007] and [2011]

The World Design Rankings is based on the number of designers that have been granted an A’ Design Award. Kuwait is ranked 16th (which is pretty high) mostly because of AGi Architects who’ve won 14 awards so far. AGi are the guys behind projects like the Secret House pictured up top and the Star House pictured below.

I absolutely hate the architecture of residential buildings in Kuwait so it’s always great seeing how buildings can be beautiful in Kuwait if they’re done right. Check out all their projects on their website [Here] and their Facebook page [Here]

This is just a quick post for anyone that’s interested in silkscreen printing. I found a small place in Shuwaikh that sells pre-stretched aluminum screens in various sizes along with squeegees and silkscreen ink.

The prices are pretty reasonable, I picked up a small sized screen with a squeegee for KD11. The screen alone was KD7 which is a bit cheaper than the KD7.5 I paid for my wooden screen of similar size which I had purchased from Dasman Complex. The inks cost KD5 per color but each can will probably last you forever since you only need such a small amount to print. They also had metalic colors like gold and silver but I think they were for KD12.5.

The store is called Bin Naji and their phone number is 24929993/4. They’re located next to the Shuwaikh police station and here it is on [Google Maps]

If you’re interested in the tech behind the film, it was shot by Tarek Jammal with a Canon 5D Mark III using the 24-70mm f/2.8 Sigma lens. The film was composed of around 9,000 photos and they were color corrected in Alien Exposure before compiling them in a Mac app called Time-Lapse and then edited in iMovie.

This is an interesting initiative, instead of illegally spray painting on private property, a bunch of graffiti artists are looking for people who are willing to donate a wall to spray on. The general idea is they want to make Kuwait a more colorful place and graffiti is one way of going about it. The group have only two requirements, one being that the wall has to be outdoor, and two is that they won’t graffiti any sort of advert. If you’re a property owner and are interested in donating a wall contact AbdulRazzaq on alshamali@razzag.com

Reza Abedini, is an Iranian designer and a professor of graphic design and visual culture at Tehran University. Abedini is one of the most famous graphics designer in Iran because of his modern Persian typography.

The above is a preliminary sketch of the Kuwait Airways logo sketched by then acting CEO Harry Pusey in 1958. Pusey was inspired by a bird ready to leave a tree branch while at a cafe in Beirut. This is what he had to say about the logo:

While designing the logo, I had to review the company’s image and develop a new logo and brand identity. Therefore the bird with its beak held high, reflecting my hope that to whichever destinations KU aircraft may fly, it must always be safe in the sky and there must not be any accidents.

The logo is still used by Kuwait Airways today.

I took the photo above from @kuwaitairways where they also posted the picture below which is a view from the Safir Airport Hotel. That’s an amazing view.